This week is way more than I could ever handle on my own; which is why I'm so thankful for that gift of the Holy Ghost.

Being able to travel the world in 8 blocks is just overwhelming; I'm getting washed away in these waves of cultures and peoples, and it is unrelentless. Just the time here is amazing. I had the opportunity to go to three different areas this week on exchanges and baptismal interviews. The thing about getting washed and overwhelmed is that everything that grew on the outside for years, gets worn away, until the core remains. I've been thrown from bikes, squeezed through rough alleyways, and other shocking experiences; and doing all of that has helped me remember what I already had in my core - Who I am. We are all sons and daughters of God, and we lived with him as spirits once before we were born. We came by faith to this world, and are given commandments and prophets to guide us in the things we should do. Even if we know we must obey these commandments or face eternal death, it'll be up to us to do it in the end.

Sooo, exchanges were super fun this week! Went with the amazing Elder Gillie from the YSA ward! We did some serious work in our area; and taking charge was a challenge. Definitely wore me down. But Elder Gillie definitely cheered me up; he is family friends with my MTC companion, and it really made me happy to hear about Elder Copley again!

We had a cool experience with a guy at BART station who got a flat on his bike; fixed it up but made a great relationship with him. Super weird because we're surrounded by hundreds of people, and we just sitting in the middle of this storm of people ripping this impossible tire off a chinese bike! A ton of people came wanting to know who we were and what we're doing! Service is the best!!!!! A girl even came up and asked if that was what we did for missions; "do you guys just do this all day, like a service mission?" And I was like' yeahhhhhh..... but not really; do I look like i sit here all day to fix people's tires?" and she says, "well, yeah..."HAh, we get a lot of new investigators to baptize! Never be scared to serve!!!

Pictures: I attended a fantastic Zone training this week, had an interview with President Meredith, and an Alex Boye concert this week. ​

FOUND DAD's Twin; Liang Li Zhi, Less active, Beijing lai de! Is freakishly like dad, except the version that met missionaries a little later in his life... SO CRAZY

SHOCKERS

Bike Got JACKED UP (STOLEN;(

WEEK OF MIRACLES!!! A change of heart means a lot to God, and he changed our work in the best of ways!

Met the Coolest people ever!!! People from the rarest corners of this earth have somehow ended in my little UNION CITY, PRecious!!!!

﻿O﻿n a night looking for less actives, we ran into a house that we were told had Chinese people living there (kinda wrong, asking just for chinese people, but what can we do, we fly around the world in 8 blocks...) Knock the door, and some curly haired Spanish looking dude opens up. We were shocked and skeptical, but for some reason still spoke in Chinese, to which he threw back in the clearest Mandarin I've ever heard! His name is ARAFAT, and after some convincing, we were able to come in for a quick lesson! Amazing lesson! So he's from a part of China called Xin Jiang 新疆, where Uzbekistan's and Chinese mix! Crazy cool, been here only four months, and his English is way better than Elder Lau's! ITS TOO COOL!!!!! I really can't take it, thank goodness for the Holy Ghost;)

PRECIOUS TO THE LORDThis week has taught me a lot about how the Lord sees efforts. I had goals to achieve our key indicators this week: three new investigators, and made great efforts in what I lacked (specifically OpenYourMouths). It was interesting that I didn't receive direct results from those efforts, but what I did gain was great improvements in how I planned and prepared for my lessons and oyms. What the new investigators did come from was from our other finding efforts; in environments that others already had questions concerning faith and repentance. In those English class, we already have a spiritual thought every class, so people naturally had been exposed to a gospel doctrine.

I was happy to learn that from this week, that God does love us so much and wants us to grow in every aspect; even if what we are doing isn't completely perfect. I'm sure out of all the people I invited to be baptized during a quick talk in the busy streets, about 50% actually heard what I said. And almost everyone of them accepted to be baptized when invited! It was almost immediate, as if they had been waiting forever to just say they wanted to be baptized!

The Lord really does care for me, and has strengthened me through the faithful testimonies of others. It happens occasionally in the streets as the Spirit open my ears to hear a change of heart. I met two people who wanted to stop some physical addictions, and were willing to try the Gospel of Jesus Christ; and it happened at the "Why I Believe" Fireside last night. As I heard the simply humble and powerful testimonies of those recent converts, the Spirit touched my heart as they testified unanimously of Jesus being the Christ through the stories of their faith. I hope I can remember all of this, but I should be wiser than merely hoping to remember, just write them down in my journal. I hope I can learn to prepare to teach and love, because all these new people really want to learn, and I don't know if I'll be able to meet their needs. But hey, I'll try, and I'm sure the Lord will do. Excited for the visit, and I'm excited to see the changes in my mission as we stay firmer in preparation and doctrine. It's a great focus that ties in well with our Missionary Purpose, my Zone's focus of inviting others to baptism, and direction to my own goals.

God sees all of his missionary efforts. If we are simply obedient in small and simple ways, we can test and prove Him for what He is; a FATHER. As a father, He answers our sincere desires and gives what He knows as we need it. I don't understand all the gifts I have, how to use them or why I have them, but God has given me and all of us stewardship over them. When we are obedient, all that is the Fathers will be for our benefit. I think a simple gift that may have been for my faith was trying to talk to this guy. Took a picture with him cause he looked like my MTC companion Elder Black, but getting to know him, Christian said he was not religous at all. I, being stubborn of course, told him he was, and said it's something we don't understand, but it's there. And as I talked to him, and taught of God, my voice broke and the words stopped, but the feeling of the Spirit did not. I said a lot of things that were not my words, nor my voice, and this guy felt the difference. Stopped walking and listened. Surprisingly he walked away from my invitation. But this experience was a gift to me that God would still confound me with His power regardless of others' choices and shares with me His love! The same is in all of our lives, as we are obedient, the small gifts in life manifest themselves to us, so that the Power of God might strengthen us!​

ZONE SPORTS!! NOTHING TO TALK ABOUT HERE. THE UPPERCASE IS ALITTLE BOLD...